195-pounder No Pushover In The Pits

Off the football field, Rob Englehart wears braces, is mild-mannered, smiling, smart, personable and polite.

On the field, he still wears his braces. But when he pulls on his helmet and shoulder pads and rips off his civilian shirt, he turns into Ironman.

At 6 feet 2 and 195 pounds, Englehart of Tampa Plant is the smallest player on Florida's gigantic offensive and defensive lines, which averages more than 260 pounds per man.

As weakside defensive end, Englehart plays next to Apopka's Anthony Williams, a 275-pounder. Chris Miller, the nose guard, has slimmed down to 272 after weighing 280 earlier in the month. Tackle Roy Phillips checked in at 245. And Eric Hayes of Tampa broke the scales at 295. He must play opposite Georgia giants like Anthony Butts (6-5, 270), Bobby Hodge (6-6, 275) and Chris Warren (6-6, 255).

Being the lightest never has fazed Englehart. All year long he was listed on Plant's roster as a robust 200-pounder. He played at 175 pounds, making eight solo tackles per game, playing with a fearless disregard for his body that bordered on recklessness.

''When you see films of him tackling,'' Plant Coach Roland Acosta said, ''he puts on a clinic. He tackles everybody.''

''When you're as little as I am,'' Englehart said, ''you have to have something going for you. Those other guys are so much bigger and stronger that I have to pump myself up to play. Sometimes, I get so pumped, it drains the energy from me.''

It's not his nature to back off from a challenge. When he was 14 years old and living in San Diego, he became the youngest person to complete the grueling Ironman competition in Hawaii.

The Ironman consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile marathon run. Englehart went the distance in 13 hours and 54 minutes. He finished 160th among 350 competitors.

Is he still the youngest to succeed?

''Another 14-year-old did it the next year,'' Englehart said, grinning, ''but it took him 18 hours to complete.''

Preparing for Saturday's showdown with Georgia in Orlando Stadium, Englehart assured his preference for playing football.

''I did a little triathlon at Cypress Gardens after I moved to Tampa,'' Englehart said. ''But my bike is still in the garage, getting rusty. I just play football now.''

He has been playing football since he joined a Pop Warner program in San Diego when he was 8.

''Ever since I was a little kid, I've always liked to run into things, and I like to fall on the ground,'' Englehart said. ''Football gave me a good excuse to run into people and fall on the ground.''

At his size, Englehart plays on feel and instinct. He is smart (3.5 grade point average on a 4.0 scale), intense and loves the game.

''It's fun to me. I like it a lot,'' he said. ''It's all worth it when you make the big hit . . . you sting someone good.''

That's the challenge to Englehart, just like the Ironman challenge.

It began as a suggestion from a friend of his dad's, a chiropractor who treated the SEAL team for the U.S. Navy in San Diego.

''My dad was serious about it. I wasn't,'' Englehart said. ''He signed me up for AAU swimming and got me a bike. Then he entered me in the Superfrog, which was a half Ironman competition sponsored by the Navy. I did that, and it became the motivating factor. If that's half, I can do the big one.''

He believes in himself and takes that approach to competition. He believes the Ironman is more mental, football more emotional.

''When you're 100 miles away on your bike from anything, it's all mental,'' he said. ''Football's more emotional. You can use your emotion a lot more to keep you going.''

Englehart knows the adrenaline will be flowing Saturday night and next month when he reports to Stanford University to begin his college career.

''When I got here,'' Englehart said, ''three or four people asked me if I played quarterback. They saw me as being lean and lanky, and they kind of smiled when I told them I played on the line.

''I smiled back and said, 'We'll see when we get on the field.' This gives me a chance to show what I can do.''